1. The Devil in the Marshalsea
London, 1727. Thomas Hawkins, a clergyman’s son with expensive habits and little respect for authority, is robbed before he can settle a debt and committed to the Marshalsea. Inside the prison, comfort depends on money and patronage, while destitute debtors face hunger, disease and violence. Hawkins…
2. The Last Confession of Thomas Hawkins
London, 1728. Thomas Hawkins begins his account on the road to Tyburn, condemned for a murder he says he did not commit. The events leading to the gallows begin when he accepts an assignment involving Henrietta Howard, mistress of George II and servant to Queen Caroline.…
3. A Death at Fountains Abbey
Yorkshire, late spring 1728. Fresh from his escape from the gallows, Thomas Hawkins travels with Sam Fleet to Studley Royal, the estate of John Aislabie. The disgraced former Chancellor of the Exchequer has received anonymous threats, and Queen Caroline expects Hawkins to protect him while secretly…
4. The Silver Collar
London, autumn 1728. Thomas Hawkins and Kitty Sparks have built a precarious home above the Cocked Pistol bookshop, but an attack on Hawkins reveals that someone has paid to have him killed. His search leads to Lady Vanhook, the escaped enslaved man Jeremiah Patience and a…